Utah judge to hear petition from death row inmate

A state judge on Thursday will hear a petition from a condemned inmate set to die by firing squad next month who wants his death sentence vacated.

Ronnie Lee Gardner wants 3rd District Judge Robin Reese to order a new sentencing hearing in the 25-year-old murder case.

In April, Reese signed the warrant that set Gardner's June 18 execution date.

Attorneys for Gardner contend that the state court must consider the mitigating evidence presented during a federal appeal of the case before putting Gardner to death.

The attorneys also contend that executing Gardner after 25 years on death row no societal purpose — neither retribution, nor deterrence — and constitutes cruel and unusual punishment.

Gardner, 49, was convicted of capital murder and sentenced to die in 1985.

Source: Associated Press, May 27, 2010

Judge considers request to stay Ronnie Lee Gardner execution but declines to grant new sentencing hearing

A judge agreed Thursday to consider staying the scheduled June 18 execution date of Ronnie Lee Gardner.

Third District Judge Robin Reese said he would take the motion to stay the execution under advisement and issue a ruling later Thursday or Friday.

The judge, however, did rule in favor of a prosecution motion for a summary judgment, meaning Reese confirmed Gardner's death sentence and declined to grant him a new sentencing hearing.

Defense attorney Andrew Parnes had asked that Gardner be re-sentenced, giving the death-row inmate a shot at receiving a sentence of life without the possibility of parole. That sentence was not an option when Gardner was originally convicted.

Parnes argued that Gardner's equal-protection rights were violated when he was not given unlimited funding in order to present mitigating evidence when he was appealing his death sentence at the state level.

Reese, however, disagreed.

The Utah Supreme Court is scheduled to hear similar arguments on June 3 about why Gardner's sentence should be changed to life without the possibility of parole or whether a new sentencing hearing for Gardner should be ordered. The court agreed to hear the case quickly because of the pending June 18 execution date.

While the high court said it would consider all pending motions in Gardner's case, Reese had asked defense attorneys and prosecutors to address the issue of the motion to stay the execution while the Supreme Court considered new arguments in the case.

Parnes argued that the state statute is clear that when a petition for post-conviction relief is filed, the judge must issue a stay of the execution date.

But assistant attorney general Tom Brunker said the defense was merely trying to enter into a sort of round robin in which the state would have to re-file an application for the warrant, requiring another hearing and another execution date — something that could go on indefinitely.

On April 23, Reese signed an execution warrant authorizing Gardner's death by firing squad on June 18. Under Utah law, Gardner was allowed to choose between lethal injection and the firing squad as the method of death.

Gardner was sentenced to die in 1985 for murdering defense attorney Michael Burdell during an escape attempt from the old Salt Lake County courthouse. Gardner, who was appearing in court on a separate murder charge, also shot and wounded court bailiff George "Nick" Kirk.

Gardner has spent the last 25 years appealing the conviction on every level possible.

Source: Desert News, May 27, 2010